Category: NHL

Bruins Show Footage of Sad Fans in Maple Leaf Square on Jumbotron After Game 7 Win
5 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Bruins Show Footage of Sad Fans in Maple Leaf Square on Jumbotron After Game 7 Win

You would think the Boston Bruins' dominance on the ice against the Toronto Maple Leafs would be enough.

After all, the Bruins' 2–1 overtime victory Saturday evening in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup playoffs' first round polished off their seventh straight postseason series win over the Maple Leafs. Toronto hasn't beaten Boston in a playoff series since 1959—eight years before its most recent Stanley Cup title.

However, the Bruins took matters a step further after right wing David Pastrňák's winner. As Boston celebrated its triumph on the ice, the operators of TD Garden's Jumbotron gleefully showed footage of a defeated Maple Leaf Square.

Maple Leaf Square, as the name implies, sits adjacent to Scotiabank Arena and is a popular rallying point for Toronto sports fans (basketball-savvy readers may know it as Jurassic Park).

Given the imbalance between Boston and Toronto's sports success this century, it seems fair to ask: haven't the latter's citizens suffered enough?

Boston Bruins, NHL, Toronto Maple Leafs
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Maple Leafs Fall to Bruins in Overtime to Extend Infamous Game 7 Losing Streak
5 May 24 Jimm Sallivan

Maple Leafs Fall to Bruins in Overtime to Extend Infamous Game 7 Losing Streak

In 2019, SI's S.L. Price christened the Toronto Maple Leafs' plight "one of the world’s last great championship droughts."

That sentiment will hold true for another year.

The Maple Leafs lost 2–1 in overtime Saturday to the Boston Bruins in Game 7 of the two teams' first round series, ensuring that Toronto will remain Stanley Cup-less as it has every year since 1967.

More immediately, in extended the Maple Leafs' infamous streak of Game 7 losses to six—four of which have come to the Bruins in 2013, '18, '19 and now '24.

All four of those losses came in Boston.

Boston right wing David Pastrňák netted the winner at 1:54 of the overtime to send the Bruins to the second round, where they will meet the Florida Panthers. The goal came after a wild sequence where Toronto nearly won the game late in regulation.

The Maple Leafs' last triumph in a Game 7 came against the Ottawa Senators in the conference quarterfinals on April 20, 2004.

Boston Bruins, NHL, Toronto Maple Leafs
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Mark Stone's Wife Poses With Jersey Referencing Golden Knights Star's Roster Status
30 Apr 24 Jimm Sallivan

Mark Stone’s Wife Poses With Jersey Referencing Golden Knights Star’s Roster Status

Much has been made of the salary cap loophole the Vegas Golden Knights have notoriously taken advantage of over the past few seasons, particularly to do with the injury designation of star forward Mark Stone.

Stone has, rather conveniently, been placed on the league's long term injury reserve list in February or March during each of the last three seasons. That designation enables the Golden Knights to take on more salary at the trade deadline without going over the cap, much to the chagrin of NHL fans.

During Monday's game against the Dallas Stars, Stone's wife Hayley posed for a photo with a Golden Knights fan who was wearing a custom jersey referencing Stone's frequent trips to the LTIR.

The fan wore one of Vegas's Winter Classic sweaters, with Stone's No. 61 on the back, but instead of the right winger's name, it instead said, "LTIR."

While NHL fans have been vocal about their disdain for the salary cap maneuvers from Vegas, Hayley took the opportunity to have a laugh over the situation.

In each of the past three years, Stone has returned from LTIR just in time for the Golden Knights' opening round playoff series. This year, against the Stars, he even scored the first goal of the series, a fitting feat in his return to the ice.

Golden Knights, Mark Stone, NHL
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Coyotes Attempted to Short-Change Hotels on Bills Late in Arizona Tenure, per Report
30 Apr 24 Jimm Sallivan

Coyotes Attempted to Short-Change Hotels on Bills Late in Arizona Tenure, per Report

The Arizona Coyotes are currently history, having suspended operations on April 18 as the NHL transferred their assets to a new team in Utah.

In the midst of this new reality, the postmortems of the Coyotes' dysfunctional tenure are just beginning. During their 28-year stay in the desert, Arizona advanced past the first round of the playoffs just once—making the Western Conference finals in 2012.

However, the team was renowned for its dysfunction behind the scenes, a dynamic explored at length in a Tuesday morning report from ESPN's Emily Kaplan and Greg Wyshynski.

In the report, Kaplan and Wyshynski suggested the perennially cash-strapped Coyotes attempted to short-change businesses on various bills.

"Multiple sources told ESPN that the Coyotes were either late paying their hotel bills or sometimes just crossed out the total and paid a different amount," Kaplan and Wyshynski wrote. "Other sources indicated local businesses would come to the team seeking payments, would be offered a fraction of what was owed and then would be negotiated down to take less than what was actually owed."

"Having been in business for 40 years, you wouldn't be around if you didn't pay your bills. That's all I want to say about that," owner Alex Meruelo told ESPN, declining further comment.

Regardless of the outcome of the Coyotes' current limbo, it appears both the Utah franchise and a potentially reactivated Arizona franchise could benefit from a fresh start.

Arizona Coyotes, NHL, Utah NHL team
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Kraken Stars Threatened to Refuse to Play for Dave Hakstol Again, per Report
30 Apr 24 Jimm Sallivan

Kraken Stars Threatened to Refuse to Play for Dave Hakstol Again, per Report

Dave Hakstol is the only coach the Seattle Kraken has ever known, but his tenure is reportedly ending in explosive fashion.

According to a Monday report from ESPN's Emily Kaplan, Hakstol was fired after several Kraken voiced their displeasure with him in exit interviews with the organization.

"(General manager) Ron Francis did not want to make this move," Kaplan said before the Florida Panthers' 6-1 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 5 of their first-round series Monday. "I was told at the exit meetings, a handful of players—pretty significant players—made it clear to management, 'I don't want to play on this team in the future if Dave Hakstol is the coach.'"

Hakstol's dismissal came less than a calendar year after Seattle made a surprise run to the second round of the playoffs, upsetting the Colorado Avalanche in seven games in the first round before losing to the Dallas Stars in seven games.

The Kraken went 34-35-13 this season, finishing fifth in the Pacific Division.

Dave Hakstol, NHL, Seattle Kraken
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